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Financial Crisis--Who's Fault is It?

Major U. S. financial companies are dropping like flies--but who's fault is it? Well, judging from the way too many managers think, it must be the EMPLOYEES fault. After all, every other screw-up is caused by "those stupid, low paid, lazy, ignorant, wage slaves!" Right? Don't you believe it!

Imagine this scenario:  "Hi, my name is Rodney Robbins, and I'd like to invest a million dollars with your company. What do you recommend?" "Well, we have these complicated derivatives that are the latest rage, but honestly Mr. Robbins, I can't make heads or tails of them, so I recommend you invest in a nice apartment complex or our S&P 500 fund." A month ago, this poor broker's boss would have eaten him for breakfast.

Imagine this scenario: "Hi, my name is Rodney Robbins, and I'd like to buy a million dollar McMansion." "Well, looking at your financial report Mr. Robbins, I don't see how you could afford to make payments on a million dollar McMansion. It looks to me like the most you could afford is ... maybe ... a $250,000.00 home." A month ago and this poor loan officer might have lost his job for offering such common sense advice. 

Who is at fault for steering companies onto the rocks? The captains!

As a long time quality manager, I can assure you that 90% of the time, the problem is NOT the operator. It is almost ALWAYS a poorly designed work process that doesn't make a bit of sense, barely works on paper and will NEVER work for long in the real world.

So, if things at your company won't pass the smell test--get back there in the kitchen and fix them!

How to Fire Someone

There are three ways to screw up when firing someone, according to Jack Welch in his book Winning (with Suzy Welch). They are:

• Moving too fast
• Not using enough candor, and
• Taking too long.

Moving too fast means firing someone before you have the facts, before you've filed the paperwork, before you are sure you are even firing the right person. That's bound to make an honest man cranky--maybe cranky enough to file a complaint against you.

When you don't use enough candor, the person being fired knows you are lying or holding back and they  want to know the truth. Leaving without knowing why makes anger linger, and it may linger long enough for your former employee to find a lawyer to get the truth.

Taking too long just makes everyone mad. The other employees are mad because they see some yo-yo getting away with murder while you do nothing about it. It makes customers mad because they aren't getting the service they deserve from this loser. It makes the employee mad when you finally confront them, after all, they've been getting away with murder for months, maybe years. Finally, it should make you make because employees that suck are also sucking money out of your wallet.

I don't want to say, "Fire early, fire often," but if you are a supervisor or manager, hiring and FIRING is part of your job. It's not complicated, but it is hard. It can be very hard to fire someone you've known for years, someone who used to be a good employee. That's why it is so important to do it right. No surprises!